Ok, let’s start with your carbon footprint!

What’s my carbon footprint?
A carbon footprint is the amount of greenhouse gas a country, business, product or individual is responsible for emitting. For instance, the UK has a carbon footprint of about 650 million tonnes of greenhouse gas. If we divide that by the number of us who live here, we can estimate that the average British citizen has a footprint of about 11 tonnes a year. Instead of talking about tonnes of greenhouse gas, a carbon footprint is usually measured in tonnes of CO2.

What does it mean?
You can workout your carbon footprint by adding up the different ways you use energy. There are lots of carbon calculators online which can help you do this. Take a look at – www.actonco2.direct.gov.uk
Reducing your carbon footprint may involve simple steps like washing clothes on a lower temperature or more dramatic changes such as taking the bus or walking to work instead of driving.

The average carbon footprint in the United Kingdom is 11 tonnes to combat climate change the worldwide average needs to reduce to 2 tonnes!

So what can I do?
Everyone of us can play a role in helping to combat climate change. You can help just by reducing the amount of energy you use. Start by seeing where you use energy and then see if you are able to use it more efficiently - or, better still, not at all!

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